My Hero

The mundane high school senior has probably been through their share of turmoil and drama. Most of these students explain theses problems to friends and family desperately hoping to come across someone who could truly affect their lives. I to be part of this majority, but through a very special someone I bumped into in the hallway I found that legendary inspirer of hope, Mr. Gilmore the high school janitor.

During the last gas fumes of my summer vacation, I came across devastating news. My close friend and grandma had suddenly taken her last breath of air. The report was a gargantuan disaster and it had me in the deep gallows of emotional depression. I was frightened to make conversation with my close knit family for I knew that they too had suffered the same extraordinary pain. I had comparable emotions when I was going to talk to my friends about it. All my friends were on the football team, and with a top ten nationally ranked program any sign of downfall or weakness would signify and end to my tenure on the varsity squad. So as the days flew by “one side of me was telling me to move on, on the other side I want to break down and cry”. The burn was sultry and torrid, blazing a path along the neurons inside my body. Then one day I was walking with my head down in despair and I slipped and fell on the slick laminate flooring in the auditorium.

I didn’t think much of it till a strange, ugly yet jolly old fellow spoke to me in a strong southern accent. I had never seen this proud and stout man but his name was clear for his spotless name tag read Gilmore. Mr. Gilmore and I conversed on many different topics ranging from biology, literature, to even country music and Broadway. His life was full of psycho wives and crazy gunfights which led him to his life of poverty and despair. When we exchanged our last wishes, I expected to see a tear in his eye, but ironically I discovered a man who had dismissed category 5 disasters and instead lived a joyful and benign life. This courageous man who I met only briefly had inspired me to quit my selfish and immature whining, and become a man of pride and bravery. Since the day I met Mr. Gilmore I have spread the message across numerous blogs and even into a video on youtube. This life changing message has developed in me a strong sense of character allowing me to meet all challenges whether in life or in the 5A State Championship Game with the ultimate weapon of character.

Mr. Gilmore could have been an insignificant footnote in the history of Katy High School, but rather he cherished life so much he has inspired thousands to believe in themselves to encounter all circumstances with a joyful state of mind. He too has recently passed away, but I didn’t cry or drop into an emotional pitfall. I looked back at his life with a big Ronald McDonald smile and merrily imagined his accomplishments and dreams, hoping that one day that I could find a lost boy and change him into an established man.